Oceanbird

Oceanbird is a large, wind-powered vessel under development by Wallenius Marine. The ship design aims to lower emissions by up to 90 percent[1][2] and is developed in collaboration with KTH Royal Institute of Technology and Swedish maritime technology company SSPA. Financial backing is provided by the Swedish Transport Agency.[2]

For the trimaran sailboat, see Ocean Bird.
History
Route: Transatlantic crossings
In service: 2024 (planned)
Status: In the design stage
General characteristics
Type: Wind-powered vessel, roll-on/roll-off
Displacement: 32 000 tons
Length: 200 m (660 ft)
Beam: 40 m (130 ft)
Height: 45 m (148 ft) – 105 m (344 ft)
Propulsion: Wind-assisted propulsion, five sails
Speed: 10 knots
Capacity: 7,000 cars

The ship will be equipped with five retractable, telescopic wingsails that can rotate 360 degrees. The masts will measure 80 m (260 ft) for a total height above the waterline of 45 to 105 m (148 to 344 ft). That would also make it the tallest ship in the world.[3] The rigging will be made from steel and composite materials and resemble airplane wings.[3] An auxiliary engine will be used to navigate harbors and provide emergency power.[4]

While the design is meant to be usable for different types of ships, the first version is planned to be a 200 m (660 ft) long roll-on/roll-off ship with a capacity of up to 7,000 cars. Such ships will be used on transatlantic routes and are expected to perform the journey in 12 days, longer than the current average of eight.[2]

Open-sea trials with a 7 m (23 ft) prototype were conducted in the summer of 2020 and are scheduled to continue during the fall.[5] Commercial orders are expected to start in 2021, with an entry into service in late 2024.[6]

References
  1. Nield, David. "This Gigantic Sailboat Design Could Use Wind Power to Transport 7,000 Cars". ScienceAlert. Retrieved 2020-10-08.
  2. Levin, Tim. "This cargo-ship concept is powered by gigantic wings and wants to reduce emissions by 90% — check out 'Oceanbird'". Business Insider. Retrieved 2020-10-08.
  3. "Swedish Group Just Debuted Wind-Powered Car Carrier With Towering Wings". interestingengineering.com. 2020-09-11. Retrieved 2020-10-08.
  4. "Oceanbird". www.oceanbirdwallenius.com. Retrieved 2020-10-08.
  5. "Oceanbird's huge 80-meter sails reduce cargo shipping emissions by 90%". New Atlas. 2020-09-14. Retrieved 2020-10-08.
  6. Reuters Staff (2020-09-11). "Changing tack: windpower breezes back into shipping with Swedish venture". Reuters. Retrieved 2020-10-14.
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